Agricultural Land Reform Code

The Agricultural Land Reform Code, officially designated as Republic Act No. 3844, was an advancement of land reform in the Philippines that was enacted in 1963 under President Diosdado Macapagal. It abolished tenancy and established a leasehold system in which farmers paid fixed rentals to landlords, rather than a percentage of harvest. In agricultural leasehold, the farmer cultivates the land belonging to, or possessed by, another with the latter's consent for a price certain in money or in produce or both. It also established the Land Bank of the Philippines to help with land reform, particularly the purchase of agricultural estates for division and resale to small landholders, and the purchase of land by the agricultural lessee.[1]

While the law was a significant advance over previous legislation, the bill was weakened by numerous amendments imposed by Congress, which was dominated by landlords.[2] It was also weakened by the failure of Congress to allocate necessary funds for effective implementation of the law. The act has been further amended several times subsequent to becoming law by later legislation.[3]